The concept of the work ethic, sometimes referred to as the Protestant work ethic, was first proposed by sociologist Max Weber based on economic conditions in his native Prussia. Weber observed that Protestant areas of Prussia were more economically prosperous than Catholic areas and proposed that Protestant religious beliefs had encouraged the development of a capitalist economy. More recent empirical studies have cast doubt on Weber's hypothesis.

The Work Ethic

Weber presented his ideas about work ethic in his 1905 book "The Protestant Ethic and the Spirit of Capitalism." According to Weber, Roman Catholicism had encouraged a value system based on transcending the material world in favor of prayer and spirituality. Catholics were not encouraged to focus on worldly goals such as wealth or success. The Protestant Reformation introduced a new value system that valued material success and worldly achievement. Protestants believed in the value of hard work and a frugal, self-denying lifestyle. Protestant leader Martin Luther encouraged people to think of their work as a calling from God. Because Protestants tended to work long hours without spending much money on luxuries or entertainment, they had extra money to save or invest. Weber believed that this combination of hard work, extra investment capital and a belief system that valued wealth and success led to the development of the capitalist economic system.

Work Ethic or Literacy

Although Weber's theory of a Protestant work ethic was extremely influential, Weber never tested it empirically. He simply observed conditions in Prussia and speculated that the value system of German Protestantism explained the differences in wealth between Catholic and Protestant areas. In a 2007 paper titled "Was Weber Wrong?", Sascha Becker and Ludger Woessmann of the University of Munich analyzed literacy rates and economic data for Protestant and Catholic counties of Prussia during the years prior to Weber's work. They pointed out that Luther had championed literacy because he wanted all people to be able to read the Bible in their own language. Luther's Protestant followers read and studied his German translation of the Bible, while Catholics outside of the priesthood were not expected to read the Latin Bible. By the time Weber wrote his book, Protestant counties of Prussia had much higher literacy rates than Catholic areas. Becker and Woessmann found that when they controlled for the effect of higher literacy, there was no difference in the economic success of Protestant-majority counties and Catholic-majority counties. They concluded that literacy, not a Protestant work ethic, was responsible for economic prosperity.

Human Capital

The Becker and Woessmann study emphasized the value of literacy as a form of human capital. Human capital theory focuses on the tools people use to build wealth and prosperity or improve their lives in other ways. For instance, a man who cannot read will have limited options in life compared to a man who can read. He will only be able to do work that doesn't require any reading skills, such as manual labor. He also won't be able to go to school or read a textbook to learn new skills that would give him more options. By learning how to read, he can increase his human capital and gain access to a much wider range of jobs and other opportunities. According to Becker and Woessmann, higher literacy rates in Protestant areas represented a form of human capital, greatly increasing the economic opportunities available to the average Protestant in that time and place.

Other Studies

Other empirical studies of Weber's work also raised questions about the work ethic theory. According to an article published in the "Journal of International Business and Cultural Studies," an analysis of attitudes to the work ethic in 13 different nations found the work ethic was strongest in countries such as India and Zimbabwe with a relatively low GNP, and weakest in countries like Germany and the United States with a higher GNP. This may suggest that citizens of developing nations are more likely to adopt a version of the work ethic because they are trying to improve their situation, but it does not offer empirical support for any correlation between work ethic and prosperity. Another study comparing attitudes in Malaysia and the United Kingdom found evidence for a stronger work ethic in non-Protestant Malaysia than in Protestant-majority Britain. Although the value system of some forms of Protestantism does encourage hard work and frugality, the evidence does not seem to suggest that this is an effective predictor of prosperity.

About the Author

Scott Thompson has been writing professionally since 1990, beginning with the "Pequawket Valley News." He is the author of nine published books on topics such as history, martial arts, poetry and fantasy fiction. His work has also appeared in "Talebones" magazine and the "Strange Pleasures" anthology.